[MIJB#19]

Merchantmen At North Plainfield Preview
Maassluis at North Plainfield, game of the year. Not just in Maassluis, but in the entire league people are wondering wheter the Merchantmen can do something about the Plague's supremacy. Two time defending champions and in pole-position for a third title. The Merchantmen will have to be top fit and in their best shape to even be in the game. What will the game be like?

First of, there are three kinds of football teams. The cellar dwellars, the kind of teams that steal a win here or there, but have a hard time getting close to the psychological 8-8 mark. The .500 land, where all the 7-9 through 9-7 type of teams reside. The winning football group, these are the teams who have found their trick to win games at times. The Merchantmen have moved into the last group having gone through the first two, but the Plague have kicked off in 2004 in the winning football group, but the last two seasons became a league of their own.

There's no need to run down the Plague's roster. From quarterback David Conti to linebacker 'Ferby Thompson', from left tackle Isaias Lewis through cornerback Rod Huffman, every single player is perfect for the system. The Plague need only two scoring drives on offense and the defense will do the rest. Look at the score of 24-7 and 27-6 they had against Syracuse and Frederick and you realize they do it to any team.

The Merchantmen are in for a long day and expect a big loss. After the 10-43 and 14-40 spankings by the Plague in recent history, they know they are the underdogs and have little to hope for. But that's what the Merchantmen love to be, the underdogs. But after a 13-3 season, trying to talk like an underdog doesn't do justice to their own team performance in the past season, or to the teams who really are underdogs in the league.

Going back to the 2007 AOC Champions, the Merchantmen saw how their lack of pass protecting linebackers may have cost them the victory. The team drafted Bernie Surry to fill the void, however Surry's pass defense excellence comes with a lack of pass rush technique. Given the recent games, in which the pass rush was disappointing, the Merchantmen are speculating to go back to Carl Meier as strong-side linebacker for the game against the Plague. And the team still has Mike Kershner, although 'Mickey' looks like he's going to sit out a lot this season after the 10 catches he allowed in that AOC Championship game.

In today's Monday Night Football game, the Merchantmen will be missing the long-term injured tackle Cornelius Rice and the recovering defensive tackle Andrew Rasmussen. Also injured and likely to sit out the game are flanker Gregory Monti and center Brant Heinrich. The two best defensive backs of the team, cornerback Tai Wayne and strong safety Lincoln Gilmore are a bit black and blue, but expected to play. The same counts for tackle Harold Hurtado.

The offensive line will be reshuffled, so to say, as three normal contributors are hurt. Right tackle Cornelius Rice is out for most of the season, while Brant Heinrich is a risky play. Harold Hurtado, the substitute lineman for all the tackle and guard spots, will likely get the start over Norman Holliday at right tackle. Disgruntled Heath Ferebee gets the call at center, while disgruntled Brian Hammond will once again be the backup guard.

Ready or not, the Merchantmen will have to avenge the Plague now are be facing a 1-2 start for the first time since 2004. The confidence will take a huge hit and the open weekend won't be coming at the right time. Headcoach Leroy Van Der Woude said: "We want to be above .500 as soon as possible. Going into the open week sitting 1-2, the team will only have more time to question them selves and set up a disastrous scenario for the home game against Tucker."

The panic should not start, as the two losses would be coming off the hands of last season's IHOF Bowl teams, but it isn't fun at all. But then, a victory would boost the confidence sky high, even a close loss could make the Merchantmen feel like in the period they went 11-1. Maassluis at North Plainfield, it's still boding well for a great matchup between two strong offenses and two defenses who can keep their opponentn from scoring. Tune in on MNF tonight, it could turn out to be a game to remember for the ages.